Unglamorous
by Zein
Summary: Future fic. "You had so much more than this coming to you. And I held you back. This is exactly what your mother was afraid of when we were sixteen." Rory/Jess


A/N- Okay guys. I originally started this as a songfic to Tyler Hilton's "Say It Like a Lie", but then I realized it wasn't going in the right direction. I liked what I had though, so I kept it and then I realized it fit this other song by Lori McKenna called "Unglamorous." I didn't know who sang it until I looked up the lyrics to throw them in here, and it's weird because she co-wrote the Tyler Hilton song I was originally writing from. Anyway, you didn't need to know all that. Obviously, I don't own the characters (except Brooklynn) nor do I own the song. Look for the Tyler Hilton fic up soon, because I'm really determined to write that. Oh, and one last thing... review? Please? Onto the story!

Jess' keys clink softly as he makes his way up the porch stairs. Looking at his watch, he sighs in relief. He is surprised that he has made it home this early. Truncheon had been crazy lately, and he had little to show for it. There wasn't much money to be made in publishing the works of little known authors, nor in hosting local artists once a month in an open-mic night. Unfortunately, it was what he loved to do. It wasn't like there was anything that he could fall back on anyway. Companies aren't necessarily jumping at the chance to hire a high-school dropout whose only real job had consisted of operating an independent publishing house.

Shaking his head to rid himself of these thoughts, Jess slide his key into the doorknob. He chuckles slightly as the smell of burnt chicken hits his nostrils. He drops his keys on the table before following the scent straight to the kitchen. He quietly leans against the doorframe, watching the scene play out before him.

He watches as Rory runs around the kitchen, grabbing a dish towel to wave smoke away from the smoke detector that was about to go off any second. Her layered hair's up in a messy ponytail, with more pieces falling in her face than being held by the elastic. Jess smiles at the sight of their four-year-old daughter, Brooklynn, who was currently balanced on his wife's hip, oblivious to what was going on around her. He looks back at Rory, as she stands on her tiptoes to better reach the smoke alarm.

"Daddy!" Brooklynn shouts, her tiny hands reaching out to Jess from over her mother's shoulder. Rory quickly spins around, her cheeks flushing red and a slightly sheepish grin covering her face.

Jess offers a crooked smirk, especially when he sees the ash marks smeared across Rory's left cheek. "C'mere sweetheart," he states as he scoops the little girl out of her mother's arms.

"Daddy, I go school today!" she exclaims as her hand flies around his neck, possessively holding him like he might disappear.

"Huh. You don't say," he responds sarcastically, yet his heart melts at the sight of her large cerulean eyes gazing back at him. "And what'd you do there?"

"Mommy! Show daddy my picture!" she yells, although, with her slight lisp, the sentence comes out more like "Mommy, sow Daddy my pictor."

Jess smiles at the little girl. "Why don't you tell me where it is and we go get it together. Mommy looks like she's busy right now." He smirks at Rory, who rolls her eyes before leaning over to give him a quick kiss.

"No kissing!" Brooklynn demands. "It's my Daddy time."

"Geez kid, can't we share?" Rory jokes, poking the toddler in the side.

"Nope!" Brooklynn exclaims before smiling back at Jess.

"What can I say. I guess I'm a catch." The famous Jess smirk recrosses his features.

He walks to the refrigerator, where Brooklynn's artwork is proudly held up by funny little magnets of books. Looking at the blue and pink scribbles, he looks at Rory who looks back and shrugs. "You love it Daddy?"

He tries to determine what it is for another minute before looking back at the smiling four year old. "I sure do. You want to tell me about it?"

Giggling, she nods excitedly. "It's me and you. See, that's you there and that's me there," she answers, before pointing to the blue and pink swirls respectively.

"Huh. Well you sure have your gender specific colors down pat."

"Huh?" she asks, confused.

Jess just smiles." Nothing sweetheart. Go watch some television for a few minutes while Daddy helps Mommy clean up the mess she made."

"I told her not to do it. But she tried to cook and this is what happens," she states, her hands flying around to motion to the kitchen.

Jess looks at Rory, trying to contain his laugh as Brooklynn saunters off into the living room. "Such a smart kid, that one."

"You mean a smart ass. She's definitely your daughter," Rory says, turning her attention back to the train-wreck of a kitchen.

Jess walks up behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist. He leans in to kiss her neck, before pulling back. "You smell like Canola oil."

He can almost feel his wife roll her eyes. "Romantic. Really Jess."

"Well Canola oil and burnt chicken ashes aren't really a turn on either," he laughs before swiping his fingers across the cheek and showing the black smudges to his wife.

"Shut up," Rory responds, pushing him. "You're home earlier than usual."

"Matt can deal without me for one night. Besides, looks like I'm home in time to save dinner." He heads towards the take-out drawer. "Pick your poison."

"I-"

"No Indian food. You know Lynn will never eat that stuff."

"Hello, she eats anything. In fact, that's the only trait she gets from me."

"Okay, _I'll_ never eat that stuff. Besides, I don't want to-"

"-have to burn the house down afterwards. That's getting a little old Jess. You might want to think of a new line."

"You're right. Besides, if you keep trying to cook you actually will burn the house down. And after that, making that comment will just be in poor taste," Jess replies, smirking.

"Ha… ha," Rory says as she crosses her arms over her chest. "So what are we ordering then?"

"Let's see," Jess mumbles, turning his focus on the drawer in front of him. Different menus seem to pop up out of the drawer as he opens it, some of them wrinkled and torn from being carelessly shoved back into place. As he shuffles through the seemingly multiplying number of menus, a menu for Chinese catches his eye.

"Perfect, what do you want?" he asks Rory.

She smirks. "Not Chinese."

He smirks back. "Look what we've been reduced to. Bantering over take-out. Never thought we'd be here."

"There were times I didn't either."

"You're supposed to be touring the world as a political correspondent."

"You're supposed to be a Pulitzer Prize winning author."

"Yet here we are in this crumby house living off the crappy salary I make." Jess looks down, suddenly finding his shoes immensely interesting.

Rory walks over and tilts his chin up before wrapping her arms around his waist. "Let's not forget the crappy salary I contribute, huh?"

Jess smirks, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear. "I want to give you everything you're supposed to have. You had so much more than this coming to you. And I held you back. Which was exactly what you're mom was afraid was going to happen when we were sixteen."

Rory shakes her head adamantly. "My mom loves you now, you know that. And you, you have given me everything I could have ever wanted. You, Brooklynn, and….. Justin?" she questions, taking his hand and placing it over her stomach.

"There is no way any son of mine is being named Justin, so he can go and join some boy band. I stick with my pick of Jayden," Jess smiles as Rory scrunches up her nose.

"Luke," she states, before smiling widely.

"You know what. I like it," he smiles back.

"Okay. It's settled. Now, Luke doesn't like Chinese. You're out-numbered two to one."

"Peanut-butter and jelly?" Jess questions, raising an eyebrow.

"Now we're talking."

Jess leans in to kiss his wife before a high pitched voice interrupts. "Are you guys kissing again?"

Jess looks at Rory. "Like I said, I'm a catch."

"That you are."

_No diamonds in our bathroom rings,_

_Peanut butter on everything,_

_No frills, no fuss,_

_Perfectly us,_

_Unglamorous_


End file.
